The Monk and the Swordmaster
by Sesshy'sGirlLOL01
Summary: …It rained that night, the pure rain from above mixed with the blood of those who had died that day… LuciusXKarel pairing but with hints of other pairings.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I really wanted to write this because I haven't seen any of this pairing anywhere, this is a KarelXLucius pairing, though there will be other pairings seen and hinted.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem nor am I making a profit from this.

The Monk and the Swordmaster

"Lucius could I have a word with you?" Asked a soft feminine voice from behind the Monk.

Lucius turned from inspecting his tome and his blue eyes locked with Hazel. "Of course Lady Tia." He smiled kindly at the tactician.

Tia smiled and flicked some of her brown hair from her shoulder, she then led him to a more private area by lake, it was far but not too far away from the camp.

"Is there something you would like me to aid you with Lady Tia?" Lucius asked somewhat confused. What would the tactician want with him?

She smiled and responded. "I have just been thinking about the battle plans and there is something I want to put by you- I tried talking to Hector but he… couldn't see my logic very well and Lynn and Eliwood are both busy catching up on some rest."

Lucius smiled and nodded, he liked that she trusted him with so many of her plans and secrets for that matter. He was amazed that she confined in him with so much, for example: she had just recently told him about her relationship with Legault, this surprised him given how little time the ex-Black Fang member had been in the group but she explained that the pair had known each other much longer and were close friends when she was with the Black fang- another thing that surprised him.

"So what is this plan?" he smiled, he liked the tactician, sure she had thought he was a woman when they first met but once she realized that he was in fact male she had called herself a 'Stupid, idiotic moron' and questioned why she thought he was a woman. He smiled at the memory and at the fact that she now practically attacked anyone who called him, or implied he was a woman.

"Well," her eyes gleamed with something he couldn't quite place. "I was thinking of doing something of a buddy system."

"Buddy system?"

She nodded and twirled a strand of her long deep brown hair between her fingers, the gleam in her eyes increased. "Well I was thinking that it would do well to pair off certain people together, so that they can support each other and I think it would help some of the more weaker units if there's a stronger person there to help them level up- I also think it would be good to help us all get to know each other more." Her smile turned softer. "I've tested it on a few people and it seemed to work for them."

'So that was why Hector and Florina were always together…' he mused with an inward grin. 'and several other members of our group.'

"Well what do you think?" her voice broke him from his thoughts.

"Oh! I'm sorry," he laughed. "I think it would be a good Idea actually, making friends and forming bonds in an excellent way to make it through war with a war emotionally."

She nodded in agreement. "My thoughts exactly," she clasped her hands together excitedly. "I also think it would help improve the squads fighting through the way that they get to know the people around them's fighting style they can work with it and work together."

Lucius nodded in understanding, despite the fact that the tactician explained things with far too many words he always understood what she was trying to say, there weren't many people in the group that actually understood what she was trying to explain.

"So what are your plans?" he asked.

She grinned, she knew Lucius would agree with her! "I've already paired the people up, another reason why I think its best that I talked to you."

"Me?"

She nodded. "I wanted to talk to you about who I've paired you up with."

From the expression on her face it was obvious that he was not with Lord Raymond. "Who have you paired me up with?" he asked a little bit hesitantly, something was telling him he wasn't going to like where this was going.

She scratched her arm nervously and laughed. "Well I actually wanted to pair you up with um… eh…heh… Karel."

His eyes went wide. "Karel?"

She nodded and smiled sheepishly. "I know how it sounds- I just uhh think it would be good for well… him…" she laughed again.

"You don't need to explain yourself, you are the tactician." He said simply.

Her eyes went wide and she flailed her arms around. "Don't be mad at me! I-I really think this would be good for both him.." her voice lowered significantly. "…and you…"

He smiled and touched her shoulder. "As I said you don't need to explain you're the tactician whatever you decide I'm sure it's what is best for us all."

She smiled and sat down on the cool green grass. "Thank you for your support."

He nodded. "You're welcome." He then looked over to the camp. "I should probably go now, I need to get some rest." He gave her a nod before leaving.

"Goodbye." She watched the retreating monk with soft eyes before turning around and jumping as she saw the face of a grinning Legault extremely close to hers. "Don't give me heart attacks like that!" she batted his arm playfully. "I could have screamed and then the entire camp would have come charging down here! They need rest not false alarms!"

He chuckled and tapped her nose with his finger. "Relax, you can be far too stiff sometimes." He chuckled again at the word 'stiff'.

She huffed and whacked his arm again. "Pervert." She crossed her arms and turned her nose up at him.

"So serious." He laughed moving to sit beside her. "You need to relax a little bit more, you're the tactician, you as much as any other member of our squad need rest."

Tia sighed as she felt his strong arm wrap around her. "I know… It's just… never mind…" she shook her head.

He nodded in understanding and his arm tightened around her. "I set up a nice little tent for you, I even put the damned stuffed animal in the bed for you." Tia had a small stuffed teddy bear that even though it was childish she took everywhere, it was all she had left of her past so even if it bothered half of the group she wasn't getting rid of it.

She chuckled and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Are you coming with me?"

"The dolls not sleeping with us."

She pouted and stuck her tongue out. "Fine big meanie." She batted him on the head and jumped out of his arms.

"Hey that hurts!" he rubbed his head looking up at her grinning features.

She smiled softly and held her hand out to him, he glanced up and after a brief moment returned her smile and accepted. "You know they're going to suspect something soon, especially Lynn."

He nodded and pushed himself off the ground. "I don't think we should tell them just yet," he began. "considering the things we do isn't exactly accepted outside of marriage."

She nodded and the pair made their way towards their tent.

"By the way…" Legault looked at her through the corner of his eyes. "Just why did you pair Lucius and Karel together? What are you plotting?"

She grinned. "You'll just have to wait and see."

XXX

Lucius jumped back and dodged an attack from one of the enemy's axmen. They were in the middle of a battle and even though he was paired with Karel he might as well have fought by himself considering that was what he was doing, Karel had pretty much gone on his own bloodlust ignoring the poor monk.

"GAH!" he jumped back again before casting a lightening spell at the enemy killing him instantly. He let out a sigh. "That was a little close…" he reached into his small bag and pulled out a vulnerary, he had gotten a scratch from the axe-man it wasn't too deep but he had to be on the safe side.

He glanced over at Karel who had just killed a horseman, blood was sprayed across his clothes and was dripping down his face and hair. In a strange way it was a morbidly beautiful sight, the contrast between his pale skin and the blood red was great yet it seemed so natural on Karel where on any other person it would have looked horrifying.

'I can only imagine what he would look like in the moonlight…' Lucius thought as he watched Karel make his way to another enemy, the blood splattering across the field as he sliced them in half with effortless ease.

Karel's bloodlust eyes locked with his for the briefest of moments but in those moments everything around them seemed to freeze. Lucius felt his heart stop and a heat seep through his body, it made him feel light and warm… but as soon as it had happened it was over as Karel broke the gaze and moved to his next victim.

XXX

"So how was your first fight with Karel?" Tia asked as she walked him to the tent that he was sharing with Raven.

"He…" flashes of Karel's heated bloodlust eyes flashed in his mind, he shook his head to remove the images. "he is a skilled fighter." He replied simply.

She nodded knowing he was holding something back but decided not to force him to say anything. "So you're not angry with me?" she asked, they were getting closer to his tent.

His brows furrowed in confusion. "Why would I be angry with you?" he asked.

She laughed almost nervously. "Well I thought you might have been angry cause I didn't pair you up with Raven…" she scratched the back of her head. "I sure heard about it from him, he may be docile and calm most of the time but if something bothers him he'll come and tell me…" she laughed again. "you know I think I'm one of the rare few people that man will so adamantly voice his thoughts to…" she laughed for a moment. "Well except for you… how do you manage it?"

Lucius found himself feeling a little flattered that Lord Raymond would defend him in such a way, even if he hadn't told him about it. "Lor-" he cut himself off knowing that Tia didn't know about Raven being Lord Raymond. "Raven is one of my oldest friends, it's not 'putting up with him' for me, it's simply being with a friend."

She nodded in understanding and opened her mouth to reply but promptly closed it as she noticed something small and white falling to the ground in the corner of her eyes. "Hm?" she looked up and saw small specks of snow falling to the ground. "SNOW!!" she beamed practically leaping from the ground and flailing her arms around to feel the specks fall through her fingers.

Lucius smiled at her childishness. "It's nice to see people acting so happy in times of war." She grinned at his words.

"I'm just a big kid." She pocked her tongue out at him while continuing to twirl in the snow which was becoming increasingly heavy.

"I know." Lucius gave her a bow before excusing himself.

She continued twirling and giggling right up until she heard a voice from behind her. "I thought you always hated snow…" she turned to see Legault standing a few feet away from her.

She raised a brow in confusion. "No I always loved the snow… the one who hated the snow was…" her eyes widened and watered. "Legault…"

His eyes widened as he realized what he had said. "Tia…"

"I'm not her," her voice trembled as she spoke. "nor will I ever be able to replace her." with that she stormed off towards her tent.

Legault opened his mouth to say something but he found that no words left his mouth, he couldn't speak, his heart clenched with guilt. He had truly stuffed up.

XXX

"Something seems to be wrong with Lady Tia." Kent observed as he, Lyndis and Sain watched the tactician storm into her tent.

"I should go see if she's alright." Lyndis took her hand off Kent's and moved to stand but Florina's timid voice made her pause and look to the woman who was sitting uncomfortably next to Hector.

"Umm.. I s-saw her t-talking with L-Legault…" she stuttered lightly, even if she was around men she knew relatively well she was still uncomfortable. "I-I think something he s-said upset her…"

Lyn narrowed her eyes and her head shot in the direction of Legault who was standing in the clearing letting the snow fall on him, a solemn look claiming his features.

XXX

"You're going into battle tomorrow with that man aren't you?" Raven questioned firmly as Lucius walked into their tent.

Lucius blinked. This is what he's welcomed with? Not even a 'hello Lucius' just a question which sounded more like an order. He smiled at least Lord Raymond cared about his wellbeing. "Yes I am."

"Are you feeling well enough?" he prodded.

Lucius's smile widened at his friends concern for him. "Yes I think I'll be well enough to fight." It was obvious to him the Lord Raymond was prodding so that he would have something to tell the tactician in an attempt to keep him from fighting.

Raven grumbled something under his breath before turning his attention back to sharpening his sword as he was doing before Lucius walked in.

Lucius shook his head and chuckled.

XXX

Lucius sighed as he killed a horseman, as a monk he felt bad for killing the people on the opposite side, even if the were his enemy. Most of the time the people they were fighting were just doing their jobs, the probably had families waiting for them that they would never see again.

Sighing he said a small prayer for the person he had killed. He looked up and nearly jumped when he saw Karel standing beside him watching him. "……"

"Oh, ahh… hello…" Lucius stammered under Karel's intense gaze.

Karel's nose twitched as though he was smelling something. Lucius stared at him wide eyed, was he smelling him?! "I smell… blood." His silky voice made Lucius hold back a shiver but then the meaning of the words sank in.

"Wha--? What's--" He chocked wide eyed, he stumbled back a bit as though he had been hit.

After hearing Lucius stammer like that Karel's brow rose upward and he studied the monk for a few moments before he spoke. "Ah, so you are a servant of Saint Elimine? I have no use for you. Begone." Karel went to leave having no time for monks of Saint Elimine but Lucius voice stopped him.

"So… er…" he began he really wanted to know what Karel meant when he spoke about smelling blood. "That smell of blood thing…" he tried to say more but Karel interrupted him.

"It will rain soon." He began his fist clenching around his swords hilt. "Blood will fall like rain."

Lucius looked at the man, confusion swirling through his eyes. Weren't they fighting to prevent blood being spilled? He decided to voice his thoughts. "... ... but aren't we going to prevent all that?" he exclaimed. "That's why we're fighting..." his voice became soft as he trailed off.

There was a moment of silence before Karel replied. "You, too..." his dark eyes locked with Lucius's. "Your hands will also be stained red with blood..."

Anger and shock filled Lucius. "What!" He damn near shouted, his fists clenching.

Karel continued to stare at Lucius, his dark eyes void of any emotions, it frightened Lucius a little. "You are not a fool." He began. "The more you see your own impurity, the closer you are to me. And I will not have to kill you..." It was only small but Lucius could hear something in his voice that told him that Karel didn't really want to kill him.

He looked at Karel with sad and confused eyes. "……Why…" he stood still and watched as Karel turned his back on him and headed back into the battle to continue his bloodlust…

…It rained that night, the pure rain from above mixed with the blood of those who had died that day…

A/N: What do you think? This is my first attempt of doing a fire emblem story so I hope it was okay ^^

Review?


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem

The monk and the Swordmaster

Chapter 2

"You're fighting with him next battle aren't you?" Raven asked coolly as they walked with the rest of the group, though they stuck towards the back because Raven wasn't very fond of socializing.

Lucius smiled. "It depends on what is decided." He glanced at Lord Raymond who was glaring at the tactician, who was riding with Rath on his horse, her chest to his back and her arms wrapped around his torso. Her face was pressed against his shoulder and she looked quite miserable. 'She has looked like this for days now…' Lucius thought to himself as he watched her.

His eyes then moved to Legault who was trailing beside Heath looking just as miserable as Tia, if not more. He glanced between the two wondering just what could have happened to make the pair behave in such a way.

It was then he noticed that Lyn kept sending Legault death glares but it was obvious that she had no idea what had happened either.

"Hiya Raven!" Lucius jumped from his thoughts and looked over to Lord Raymond who now had a bright and bubbly Rebecca walking beside him.

"Hn…" was the only greeting that he gave the girl.

Rebecca's expression didn't falter for a moment it was obvious that she was used to his behavior. "How are you today?" she smiled.

"Fine." He said blankly, Rebecca seemed to understand that he wasn't in the mood for chatting so she merely smiled in response and opted to walk beside him and enjoy his company. "Hello Lucius." She smiled looking over at the monk.

"Hello Rebecca." He nodded to her. "How are you feeling?" he knew that she had suffered a wound in the last battle so he wanted to know if she was okay.

Her smile seemed to widen as she seemed to know what he was asking. "I'm fine! The wounds healed nicely." She beamed and lifted her shirt up to just below her breasts to show the nearly fully healed wound on her stomach. Lucius found it a little strange how comfortable she felt around him and Lord Raymond.

"Rebecca!" Raven sounded utterly horrified that she had just lifted her shirt up.

She giggled at his reaction and pulled her shirt down, not noticing the glance that she received from Lowen. "It's alright, you don't mind do you Lucius?"

Lucius shook his head. "Not at all." He almost flinched at the cold look he received from Raven at that statement. He looked around to try to focus his attention on something else while Raven had a talk with Rebecca. His eyes eventually settled on Karel's back.

'And I will not have to kill you...' Karel's words echoed through his mind. 'Why would he have to kill me?' the more he thought about it the less sense it was making.

XXX

"Gah!" Lucius jumped back as a soldier jabbed their spear at him. Once he had regained his footing he raised his hand and summoned a lightening spell, with a flash of gold and white the soldier died.

"T-That was close…" He panted clutching his chest and coughing harshly as his illness gave him a small attack, he took a few deep breaths to calm himself.

"Phew…" he straightened up and pushed the loose hair out of his eyes, nearly jumping as he saw Karel standing before him. 'W-When did he get here?' he thought to himself stunned at how stealthy Karel could be. "Err, umm... Karel..."

Karel studied him for a moment, his eyes wondering the monk's robes that Lucius wore. "If you want to babble about your cult, find another victim." He said bluntly not caring that he had just called the Saint Elimine a 'cult'.

Lucius froze stunned, had Karel just said that? He remained in his stunned stupor until Karel turned to leave, jumping he held his hand out in protest and stammered. "M-My name is Lucius!" he knew that he had gained Karel's attention as the swordmaster paused. "And I would speak with you!"

"Very well," he turned. "Lucius." He said the monk's name with a strange tone, Lucius couldn't quite name what it was. "Speak." He stood perfectly still as he waited for Lucius to speak. Lucius was a little stunned that the man could stay so still.

"Well," his mind went back to their previous conversation, what Karel had said to him had really bothered him, but it had also been on his mind for quite some time now. "before... You said something... Something I had also been thinking for a while." It was true, even before Karel had mentioned it to him, he had been thinking about the blood that stained him.

Karel nodded slowly. "Yes, that even the hands of the acolytes are stained with blood." Something in his eyes flashed as he said the next part, it was almost disgust. "So what would you do? Become disgusted and give up?"

Lucius's eyes went wide and he felt sick at the mere mention of giving up, he had a duty as a monk to fight for the people, but his duty was also for his friends. "No!" he clenched his fists, his back straightening as he stood proud. "My beliefs give strength to my will!" he let out a sigh and felt his rigid posture deflate. "I just..." another sigh. "I wondered how you knew..."

There was a stretch of silence as though Karel were thinking carefully about what to say next. "...I live by the sword." He said finally. "My body is a weapon." His fingers twitched on his blade's hilt. "I cannot live without the taste of blood." There was something about those words, not just the words themselves, that made Lucius feel sad for Karel.

"But have you no compassion at all?" Even as the words left his mouth Lucius couldn't believe that a person could do things without a shred of care of compassion or care. "How could you know even grief without some kind of feeling?"

Something flashed in Karel's eyes that made Lucius flinch as though Karel was going to lift his sword and kill him. "...You are weak." He said coldly. "Your blood means nothing to me." he turned and left.

"……" Lucius was left standing there feeling as though he had said something wrong.

XXX

"Is everyone alright?" Tia called as the group made their way back to the camp, she noted that they all looked exhausted and she hoped that they could get this nights sleep uninterrupted.

"From what I can see." Lyndis commented trying to hide a limp in her step by leaning on Kent, who looked pretty worn himself.

Tia nodded and flinched as she saw a wounded Legault sitting on the back of Heath's wyvern. "I'm glad.." she looked back at Lyndis. "Everybody get healed up," she called out so that they could hear her. "And once that's done get some rest-" her eyes went wide and she let out a choke as she felt an arrow pierce her back.

"L-Leg-" as she collapsed to the ground Rath and Will in the blink of an eye had drawn their bows and had killed the bowman that had obviously survived the battle.

"Tia!!" Lyndis cried her eyes wide and her heart stopping.

Legault's head shot up as he heard the commotion. What had just happened? His eyes widened as he saw Tia fall to the ground, an arrow lodged in her back and blood. 'Blood!!' he shot up from the wyvern and bolted towards the tactician. "Tia!!!" he knelt beside her as the others came to stand behind him, panic on their faces.

Wincing, she looked up at him feeling her eyes becoming heavy. "P-Please…" she choked. "G-Get Serra…" he felt her slowly go limp in his arms.

"Oh god…" he spoke helplessly. "SERRA!!" he all but screamed.

"W-What's happened?!" Came Serra's voice as she came running to the scene, followed by Erk. Their eyes widened as they saw the tactician wounded and bleeding. "Quick to my tent!" Contrary to popular belief when a real, serious, emergency happened Serra became very serious in her healing duties.

Nodding Legault swiftly but cautiously lifted Tia and rushed her to the tent. 'Gods… let her live.' Was the only thought in his mind.

XXX

"How is she Serra?" Lyndis asked the second Serra walked out of her tent, Eliwood and Hector standing beside her.

Serra sighed. "With MY superior healing skills…" she crossed her arms and smirked. "She'll be fine, just needs rest!" She grinned.

Lyndis and everyone else who had heard this felt a weight light from them. "Thank you…" she breathed. "Can I see her?"

Serra shook her head. "I wouldn't, she needs rest." She looked over to see Erk working on some food. "ERRRK!!!" she charged at him, knowing that he was a terrible cook and would need her all knowing help.

Lyndis sighed and turned to leave, but not before noticing Legault who was pacing in front of the tent- it was obvious that he wasn't leaving Tia any time soon. She smiled lightly and left to get some rest, knowing that the tactician was being cared for.

X

"Tia…" Legault sighed running a hand through his hair, a habit he had that only came out when he was in a panic. "Please be okay…" with that he went back to his pacing, not caring about whether or not he looked weird.

XXX

Lucius sighed as he walked out of his tent, it was late and he wanted to go out for a small walk to clear his mind and relax his nerves. Though it was quite hard to get out of the tent due to Lord Raymond's increasing paranoia after what happened to Lady Tia.

He glanced at the tent where the tactician was resting in and couldn't help but smile as he noticed Legault pacing back and forward in front of the tent. 'I hope she wakes.' He thought turning to go off on his walk.

As he walked he couldn't help but notice a few things that made him smile. Like how Fiora was nursing a wounded Sain, though he was willing to wager that Sain's wounds weren't as bad as he was making them out to be.

Or how Heath and Priscilla seemed very cozy in their spot under a tree. He supposed that some things do come out of wars.

Sighing for a second time that night he continued to walk forwards, no really knowing where he was going and not really caring… as long as he made sure that he wasn't leaving the general area, just incase there was an enemy scout or something.

'The moon looks really beautiful tonight…' he thought looking up at the full moon that shone like a sapphire in the sky. He stood there watching the mood for a few moments before jumping as he heard a sound… splashing…

"Hm?" he hummed softly moving towards the sound of the light splashing. He passed a few trees until he came to a small clearing where there was a lake that was illuminated by the moon.

His eyes widened as he saw the source of the splashing sound.

XXX

Tia groaned as she sat up on her makeshift bed. "W-Where?" at first she panicked at being in a foreign tent but let out a sigh of relief when she realized that it was just Serra's tent.

"Unn.." she pinched the bridge of her nose to hold back a headache as pain from her back shot across her body. "Legault…" she breathed as flashes of what had happened to her and how she had gotten to the tent flashed through her mind. She smiled warmly, her headache suddenly not so bad.

Arching her back in a stretch she winced as she moved the wound on her back. Making a mental note to get Serra to fully heal it later she pushed herself out of the bed and grabbing a dressing gown began to walk out of the tent.

X

Legult's head shot back at the sound of the tent flap opening. His eyes widened as he saw Tia walk out of the tent. "You should be resting." He chastised softly as though he didn't quite know what else to say to her.

She smiled. "I just wanted to thank you."

He remained silent.

She twirled her finger's nervously. "And… I'm sorry for what happened… I-" she paused as he lifted his hand up to silence her.

"No…" he shook his head. "It's my fault… I…" he looked away in shame. "I thought about her as though she was you… I didn't mean it…" he gestured helplessly. "It just happened."

She sighed. "I understand… she meant a lot to you…" placing a hand on his shoulder she continued. "Some day I want to mean even half as much to you as she did." With that she turned to get more rest in Serra's tent.

"Tia…" he looked away sadly.

XXX

Lucius gasped as he watched the moonlight reflect off Karel's pale skin. Karel was standing in the moonlit water of the lake, he was completely naked however his lower half was hidden by the water.

'He's so…' Lucius's mouth fell open in a gasp. His eyes trailed across the pale flesh that, surprisingly enough, had very few battle scars. He watched as Karel lifted a water jug from the edge of the lake and placed it into the water to collect the cool liquid.

Lucuis's eyes went even wider as he watched Karel fling the water over his head, he watched as the water ran across his flesh, trailing across his muscles he also noticed the way his dark hair clung to the pale flesh.

At Lucius's intake of breath Karel froze, his body stiffened as though he was about to attack an enemy.

Lucius's eyes went wide and he felt his body freeze. He tried to move his legs to run away but he just couldn't find the strength to move, it was as though he was being held back by some invisible force.

It was only as Karel began to move that Lucius found the strength to move, swiftly, with energy he didn't know he had, he turned and fled from the scene.

Karel's head shot around but he couldn't see anybody. "…" his nose twitched and he smelt a familiar scent.

XXX

"Lucius." Raven watched the monk bolt into the tent clutching his chest tightly as he coughed. "Are you well?"

"Y-Yes!" Lucius coughed clutching his chest, he tried to rid his mind of the images but they just wouldn't leave his mind.

"Lucius?"

A/N: ^^ I hope you all enjoyed this chap, I'll try to update soon ^^

Review


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: The final part, I hope you all enjoy it ^^

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem.

Chapter three

"Lady Tia are you well?" Lucius asked as he moved to walk beside the tactician whose wound had taken a good week to heal fully.

Tia looked over to Lucius and smiled warmly. "I'm a lot better than Wil." She chuckled looking back to Wil who was covered with what appeared to be bruises and was limping from his 'training' with Rath.

Lucius smiled. "That is good." He looked up at the clear blue sky. "I'm glad."

"Alright." She crossed her arms and sent him her notorious 'raised brow' look. "What's wrong?" she all but demanded. "You've been like this for days." She moved closer to him in an intimidating way but a grin could be seen in her eyes. "Well? I'm waiting."

He looked away as a red tinge took his face as images of when he saw Karel by the lake flashed through his mind. "N-Nothing's wrong." he stammered, he sounded weak, he knew it and she knew it.

She narrowed her eyes and raised a brow. "Oh really?" she leaned closer to him, their noses almost touching.

He hastily nodded.

Her eyes narrowed further. "Is that-" Luckily for Lucius it was that moment Hector chose to call Tia over for some battle plans.

"We'll continue this later." Tia grinned before turning heel and heading towards Hector and the others.

Lucius let out a sigh of relief, he had gotten out of it. Discussing what was wrong was the last thing he wanted to do. He jumped as he felt the breeze of wind hit him as someone passed him. His head turned to see Karel walking away from him.

Feeling heat take his face he looked away hastily, so he didn't see the glance Karel sent his way.

XXX

"Chances are we'll end up fighting soon so I recommend we all take a rest for tonight before we continue any further." Tia advised the nobles as the all sat around a map.

Lynn nodded. "I agree." She glanced at Florina who looked exhausted, she had become a great fighter but too much exposure to battle was still pretty exhausting to her.

Tia looked over to Florina as well but it was the person behind her that caught her attention. Heath. And he was without Legault… something about that made her paranoid considering she hadn't seen him the entire day. "Excuse me." Tia bowed her torso before walking towards the wyvern rider.

"Lady Tia?" Heath jumped up from the ground to greet her. "Can I help you with something?" he asked.

She nodded slowly. "How is Legault?"

Heath's eyes widened. "He… he is well." There really wasn't much else for him to say, it really wasn't any of his business what was going on between the pair… that and he didn't want to get caught between them considering they both were pretty scary when angry.

"I see…" Tia caught onto Heath's hesitancy. "Thank you." with a small bow she turned heel and made her way to Lynn who was talking with Florina.

"She gone?" Heath nodded and watched as Legault jumped from the trees landing perfectly onto the ground. "Thanks."

Heath nodded but couldn't help but ask. "Why are you avoiding her?"

Legault shook his head sadly. "We're still on shaky ground, I don't think it would be smart to spend too much time with her…"

"You've spent three days avoiding her." Heath replied almost blankly.

Legault sighed and scratched his head. "I know…" he gestured helplessly. "It's just hard… I think the space would be good for us…"

"I thought the space would be good for me and Priscilla," he pulled at the reigns of his wyvern and began to walk away. "I was wrong." with that he and his steed walked away.

Sitting at the base of the tree Legault tried to ignore the nagging voice in the back of his head that screamed at him that Heath was right.

XXX

Lucius went to open the flap to his tent but paused as voices filled his ears.

"Why not?" It was Rebecca and she sounded clearly distressed. "Is there something wrong with me?"

A sigh that was distinctly Lord Raymond's was heard. "It's not that Rebecca-"

"First my Brother…" she interrupted him. "…and now you…? I-I… I can't take this!" with that said she stormed from the tent not even caring that she practically bombarded Lucius on her way.

'Rebecca?' he thought confused. He then slowly walked into the tent to see if he could ask Lord Raymond just what happened between the two. As far as he was aware they were becoming friends.

"Lord Raymond?" Lucius asked once he was inside the tent. He looked over to Raven who was sitting angrily on his bed. "Is something the matter?"

Raven plopped back on his bed and turned away from Lucius, an indication that he wanted to be left alone. Lucius took the hint and moved towards his makeshift bed. "I think I should rest… who knows when we'll have this chance again."

A grunt was his only reply.

Lucius sighed and scooted into his bed.

XXX

Tia sighed and looked up at the moon as she sat beside a small pond. She knew she should have been sleeping but she just couldn't get to sleep. "Why must we fight…?" she thought aloud leaning back on her elbows so that she could get a better view of the night sky.

She didn't turn as she heard footsteps drawing towards her. She knew perfectly well who it was who was behind her. "Legault…" she breathed, his footsteps stopped the instant she said his name. "You… you have been avoiding me." it wasn't a question, nor was it a statement really.

"…Yes…" came his reply.

She felt her lips twitch. "You said something… I half expected you to run off." she sat up and patted the spot beside her. "Sit."

Slowly he walked beside her and seated himself. Neither said anything for a long while, both opting to just enjoy the sight before them.

"Sorry…" Legault broke the silence with a nervous stammer.

Tia smiled. "It's alright."

XXX

Lucius looked around from where he stood in the battlefield. There was surprisingly enough, next to no bodies around them- this was strange considering that where they were positioned was the perfect place for reinforcements to come from… but there was nothing… absolutely nothing.

He looked over to Karel who was leaning against a tree in deep thought, his body was strangely clean today, there were a few splatters of blood but nothing compared to what he was usually like. It seemed as though today he wasn't as into the fighting as he usually was- this in itself scared Lucius…

"Lucius." Lucius jumped at the sound of his voice. He looked up to see Karel staring at him with a strange emotion in his eyes.

"Karel..." He said softly not quite knowing what to say to the swordmaster considering he was pretty sure he had offended the man in their last encounter.

There was a long stretch of silence before Karel spoke. "...You are not a fool." While his voice was calm there was a certain hesitancy to it, as though he was wasn't used to saying those words. "And you are weak." There was no malice in those words. "That is why I do not need to kill you."

"……" Lucius remained silent. He honestly had no idea what to say… was Karel apologizing?

It was a long time before Karel spoke. "Perhaps that also is why..." the hesitancy in his voice was clearer now and it was more than obvious to Lucius that Karel was struggling with his next words. "When I am near you, I feel...calm."

Stunned, Lucius stared at Karel wide-eyed. He honestly had no idea what to say to that…calm? It was as he thought on Karel's words that he noticed the state that the other, his face was paler than usual and under his eyes were the faintest signs of bags… he looked terrible, as though he had spent days without sleep or even food as he did seem thinner than usual... "...You look tired." He suddenly said, his hand reaching out of it's own accord to touch the pale cheek… strangely Karel allowed it…

"...What?" there was a slight creasing of his brow.

Lucius found himself tracing Karel's pale cheek. "You face seems pallid, drawn, and worn. It looks unhealthy." He explained and it was true, Karel looked more pale than usual- he didn't look well at all.

"Perhaps..." Surprisingly enough, Karel found himself lean a fraction into the soft touch. "I am..." he let out a sound that was suspiciously a sigh. "tired." He looked away from Lucius, as though ashamed of what he was going to say next. "When I fight, my entire body is filled with a hunger I cannot suppress." His tired eyes returned to Lucius. "...I have never had the luxury even to imagine fatigue..." slowly his hand rose to touch Lucius's.

"I don't care about your fighting." As Lucius spoke a strange gleam appeared in his eyes. "I cannot change the way you live." Raising his spare hand he placed it over Karel's. "Nor would I. We both follow our beliefs."

Karel's cold finger's twitched at the feeling of Lucius's warm ones. "......" he stared at Lucius's ocean blue eyes that burned with strange, passionate

Lucius was silent for a long length of time- it was as though he was enjoying the silence that was passing them. "I don't know why you believe this killing is your destiny," he licked his dry lips, and somehow they began moving towards a nearby tree without even realizing it. "but I pray that you will someday know peace."

Karel moved with Lucius to the ground, it was as though the pair were under some sort of spell… a spell they didn't want to be released from… "I want...to sleep." As though entranced his head moved down to Lucius's lap. "If only for a while..." closing his eyes he felt Lucius's hand move through his hair… why he allowed this was beyond him…

"Rest now..." Lucius breathed running his feminine fingers through Karel's long hair. A smile formed on his lips as he watched Karel close his eyes.

'Rest now…with me…'

XXX

"Where is he!?" Raven all but shouted as he stomped towards Tia's tent. "Where is he!?" he repeated tearing the tent's flap open.

Tia looked back from tending to Legault's wounds. " 'He'?" she raised a brow at him and pressed particularly hard on the cut across Legault's thigh.

"OW!!!" Legault hissed attempting to pull his leg back- but then stopped as Tia gently stroked the area.

Raven's glare increased. "Lucius." He sneered.

Tia's eyes widened a fraction. "He didn't come back with Karel?" quickly she tossed a bottle of vulnerary on the wound- making it heal instantly. "Let's go!" she jumped up and dragged Raven off to look for Lucius.

"Oi! Wait!" Called Legault as he scrambled off after them.

X

"…You mean no one noticed that we were down two members?" Tia growled dangerously as the three of them stood by what was a battlefield only a few hours ago.

Raven crossed his arms. "I was wounded." He said softly, hints of shame in his voice. He looked away to some of the bloody remains of the things they had fought that day.

"You had me in the tent right after the battle." Legault defended himself.

Tia sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I didn't mean you two." Stepping forward she pointed in a random direction. "Alright…" she looked at Raven. "You go that way and look," she pointed in another direction. "Legault you go that way, and I'll go that way!" she said pointing the direction she was going to go in.

Nodding Raven wasted no time in going in the direction ordered.

"We'll meet at Lucius and Karel's appointed area!" Tia called out to him, she turned her attention to Legault when Raven nodded in response. "Be careful." Was all she said before heading in the direction she had appointed herself.

"You too." He replied offering her a smile even though he knew she couldn't see it.

XXX

"Well that's appealing…" Tia pulled a face as she saw a family of foxes devouring the severed remains of what once was a soldier. "Yummy…" she sighed as she kept walking.

"I really need a horse…" she sighed after another twenty minutes of walking. "Should have bought Rath with us- he'd be able to find Lucius like that!" she clicked her index finger and thumb to put emphasis on her point.

Freezing as she heard a groaning sound from behind her she inwardly prayed that it wasn't what she thought it was. "Oh… why me?" she almost sobbed as she turned to see a corpse staggering towards her. "Well… guess I have no choice…" she murmured lifting a nearby stick. "Hope somebody finds me soon." With that said she charged at the creature.

X

'What's that?' Legault thought as he heard the sound of what appeared to be the grunts of someone fighting. Drawing his iron sword he headed in the direction of the sound.

X

"This brings back memories." Tia mused as she looked down at what was left of the zombie creature, having just dismembered it. She grinned at the stick in her hands. "Good stick." With that said she turned to continue her search for Lucius.

"You killed that with a stick?" Tia jumped at the voice behind her. "Heh… I had forgotten how skilled you actually are…"

"Legault I swear to whatever deity is listening that if you sneak up on me again I will hurt you." Turning Tia sent him a humorous glare. "If you had forgotten I WAS a member of the black fang."

Smirking Legault jumped down the small hill to be at her level. "Come on let's look for those two, there's nothing down the road you picked for me."

Narrowing her eyes Tia sincerely doubted that there was 'nothing' down the road she had chosen for him but she decided to let it slide. "Come on." She smirked.

XXX

"Raven?" Tia noticed the red haired man leaning against a tree waiting for them. "You find anything?"

Raven sent her a glare and threw a decapitated head to her feet.

"Yummy…" Tia pulled a face. "Well let's go see where they were posted." Originally she hadn't thought of going to where they were posted considering Karel's tendency to run off on a bloodlust.

"Raven why are you so protective of Luci-OH!!!" her hands flew to her mouth at the sight before them… Lucius asleep, leaning against a tree, with an equally asleep Karel resting his head in the monk's lap.

Legault blinked… this couldn't be what he was asking Tia about when she had first decided to pair them together… could it?

Raven was… taking it well… considering how protective he was of Lucius…

"…umm…" Tia began not quite knowing what to say. "…perhaps we should… umm… let them be… they're safe… I umm… don't think… anything is… umm… going to hurt them… umm.. tonight…" with a blush on her face she turned and sped walked away.

Raven turned to argue with her but was stopped by Legault. "Trust her… they'll be fine."

Glaring Raven trudged after Tia.

XXX

Groggily, Lucius's eyes opened as he felt the sun's rays against them. Had he fallen asleep? '…I must have…' he thought going to move only to feel weight on his legs. "Huh?" gasping he looked down to see the dark silky hair and pale features.

'…oh that's right…' he smiled as he remembered what had happened on the battlefield. 'That was actually the most I've ever heard Karel express himself… let alone say…"

It was then it hit Lucius. "The battle!!" he panicked and tried to think of a way how to move with out Karel waking and killing him. "Oh no-"

"They know we are here…" Came Karel's cool voice. Wide eyed Lucius's head shot down to see Karel's dark eyes staring up at him.

Lucius found himself lost in those dark eyes until confusion took him as he processed Karel's words. "W-What do you mean??"

Karel didn't even move his head from Lucius's lap as he answered. "Lady Tia, the man… Raven and the Fang member Legault… they came here, found us then left." He explained bluntly.

"Oh…" Lucius's cheeks reddened as he realized that they would have seen him like this, with Karel in his lap…

"…You are…ashamed…?" Karel slowly moved up so that his face was level with Lucius's.

Lucius's eyes went wide. "What!? W-Why would you say that?!" Why would he be ashamed? He didn't understand, was Karel asking him if he was ashamed of being caught having Karel sleeping on him?

Karel shook his head- Lucius noted that he was behaving quite strangely- "Lucius…" Karel said slowly. "You are a strange creature…" a gleam appeared in Karel's eyes, a gleam that was accompanied by what Lucius could only call to be the smallest of smiles.

Lucius blinked. "Wha-" whatever Lucius had to say was cut off by hard lips on his.

XXX

"Lady Tia," Karla walked up to her. "Have you seen my brother?"

"…Now that you mention it…" Lyn looked over to the tactician. "I haven't seen Lucius for a while…"

Tia felt her cheeks redden as all eyes turned to her. "Umm…" there was a small stretch of silence. "I s-sent them scouting… umm… to see if there was any remaining enemy hanging around, they should be here soon…" she laughed nervously.

The two women eyed her for a few moments before nodding in acceptance of what she had said.

"Phew…" Tia sighed in relief, silently praying they came back soon…

XXX

It was some two hours later when Tia and the others finally saw Lucius and Karel heading towards the camp. "Lucius! Karel!" Tia charged at them excitedly. "Took you're time, eh?" she murmured under her breath with a wink when she reached them.

"Hn." Karel grunted coldly before walking away.

Lucius laughed lightly.

"…there's a leaf in your hair…" Tia grinned reaching out and pulling the green item from his hair. "…and your hair's all ruffled." Her grin widened as she brushed his hair with her hands. "Hope you and Karel had a nice 'sleep' " she chuckled walking towards Legault who was watching them intently.

Lucius felt his cheeks heat. 'What does she know…?' he asked himself wearily as he headed towards his tent. '…I wonder what Lord Raymond will say…' his hand moved up to his neck. '…especially if he saw these…'

XXX

"Lucius." Raven greeted coldly as the monk entered the tent.

Lucius gave a small bow. "Hello Lord Raymond-" before Lucius could continue Raven had shot up and pinned him against a pole that was used to hold the tent up.

"Lucius.." his voice was like ice. "I'm going to ask this only once, you understand??"

"L-Lord Raymond?!?" Lucius gasped stunned. What was going on!?

Raven sighed inaudibly. "Is it serious…?"

Lucius gasped as things made sense… Lord Raymond was worried about him… a small, warm, smile formed on his lips. "…It… It is…" when Raven's grip on him slackened Lucius pulled his old friend into a hug. "It is…"

XXX

"Congratulations people!!" Tia cheered as the group walked out from their final battle. "WE DID IT!!" she through her fist in the air. "WOOOOOO-" before she could continue her cheer strong arms had pulled her to a strong chest and hard lips were pressed against hers.

'Legault!?' she thought stunned before grinning, flinging her arms around him and returning the kiss- briefly, she realized that this was the first time they had shown a public display of affection… it was…nice…

X

"I love you." Eliwood smiled at the newly revived Ninian.

"L-Lord Eliwood." She returned the smile and took his hand.

X

Erk and Sera looked at eachother awkwardly, both knowing what they wanted to do, but not knowing how- however months from now they would look back at that moment and laugh at their idiocy.

X

A shriek was let out and all heads turned to see Hector lifting Florina up onto his shoulder, laughing as he did so.

"Hector!" Lyn gasped and went to 'give Hector a piece of her mind' only a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned to see Kent looking at her and shaking his head with a smile.

Shakily she returned the smile.

X

Rath and Wil looked at eachother in silence, both knowing what the other was thinking.

X

'Where's Raven?' Rebecca thought as she looked around for the red haired warrior. It was then she noticed him and Lucius heading through the trees. 'There.' She smiled following after.

X

"I'll stay here." Raven said coldly taking a spot by a nearby tree.

"Thanks." Lucius smiled before turning to walk towards Karel who was standing by the edge of a hill.

"…" Lucius shifted awkwardly as he came closer to the dark haired man. "Karel…" he spoke hesitantly, he didn't understand why he was feeling so awkward about this.

"Lucius." Karel breathed. "The scent of blood…" he took a deep breath. "Is… dissapating…"

Lucius smiled and stepped closer to him. "You're leaving aren't you?"

Karel nodded.

"Will I see you again?"

"Yes." Came Karel's smooth voice.

Lucius held his arm uncomfortably. "When will I see you again?"

X

"Raven?" Rebecca whispered as she stepped beside him, when she received a look that said 'quiet' from him she looked over to see Lucius and Karel. "Oh…" she breathed.

X

"I don't know…" Karel answered honestly, his dark eyes piercing Lucius's.

Lucius nodded slowly. "I see…" he stepped closer to the man he had come to know very well over the time of the war. "Can I… ask something of you… a goodbye favor…?"

Karel raised a delicate brow.

Lucius hesitantly stepped closer to Karel. "W-Would y-you-" as if knowing exactly was Lucius was asking for Karel placed his lips over the monk's in a soft kiss, he decided to ignore the fact that they had two voyeurs.

X

"Oh…" Rebecca felt her cheeks heat up at the sight of the two men kissing. "Umm…" hastily she turned away.

"Hn." Raven too turned away from the scene.

X

"Karel…" Lucius sucked in a breath. "G-Goodbye…" his sad blue eyes locked with Karel's dark ones.

Karel lowered his head in a bow. "Goodbye Lucius." Brushing his hand against the monks hair he turned and left… headed towards the fields surrounding the area…

Lucius felt his eyes sting as he watched the back of the swordmaster, he only moved from the spot once Karel was out of his sights. "Lord Raymond…" Lucius turned to his friend, with, strangely enough a smile on his face.

"Lucius?" Raven was a little confused and even though he tried to hide it, it showed. "…Why are… you so…?"

Rebecca stepped back a little, giving them a bit of privacy.

"Happy?" Lucius's smile widened. "Because I will see him again… maybe not tomorrow, but eventually I will."

Raven had nothing to say to that… he really didn't.

"Come." Lucius suddenly started. "Let's go." With that said he headed towards where the rest of the group was.

Rebecca smiled and took Raven's hand. "Come on!" she beamed.

"HUH!?"

Lucius smiled as he listened to Raven stammer while Rebecca dragged him. He hoped that Lord Raymond got the happiness he deserved, and he hoped it was Rebecca who bought him said joy.

Just like he hoped that he saw Karel again, and although there were shreds of doubt in him he had to kept hope… he KNEW he was going to see him again…

…Karel and Lucius did meet again, some time after that day…

but the point is they did meet again…

A/N: I'm not sure if I'm happy with how I ended it… I think I could have done better ^^; oh well.. what do you think?


End file.
